Paul Hoffman, analyst at Best Brokers, claimed that “since the start of 2024, Bitcoin mining in the U.S. has consumed an enormous 20,822.62 GWh of electric power.” “At the average commercial electricity rate of $0.1281 per kWh as of February, this amounts to an expenditure of $2,667,318,196.47.”

Energy Consumption and Costs

Hoffman said further, “This amount of energy could charge every electric vehicle in the U.S. 87.52 times or power 1,983,107 households for a year, which is 1.51% of all U.S. households.”

With U.S. miners accounting for 44,102 BTC, or 37.84% of global output, 116,550 bitcoins, valued at $8.2 billion, have been mined worldwide so far. Before the halving event in April, the power required to mine one bitcoin was 407,059.01 kilowatt-hour (kWh), resulting in a cost of approximately $52,144.26. Since then, 1 BTC has required 862,635.55 kWh of electricity, which, at current commercial prices, amounts to approximately $110,503.61.

Although Bitcoin mining consumes a lot of energy, for now it is the only major worldwide sector driven mostly by renewable energy. With sustainable mining growing by 3.6% overall by 2023, the Bitcoin ESG Forecast showed in January that sustainable energy utilization in Bitcoin mining has surged to a fresh all-time high of 54.5%.

Following China’s mining ban and the effective ban in Kazakhstan, miners have mostly migrated to sustainable off-grid areas or greener grids in North America. Out of the roughly 19.5 million bitcoins produced, 21 million are available.

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